Sonozaki Mion
Sonozaki Mion is one of the main characters in the Higurashi no Naku Koro ni series, Sonozaki Shion's twin sister, and the heir of the Sonozaki house. Mion is the more well-known sister of the Sonozaki twins, as well as the more mentally stable and tomboyish one. Character Summary Mion is the heir of the Sonozaki family, and is the leader of the Hinamizawa School club. As the oldest in the class, she is the Class Representative, often shortened to Class Rep. She is the granddaughter of the current Sonozaki head Sonozaki Oryō. Because her mother, Sonozaki Akane, married a man from outside Hinamizawa, the heritage was passed immediately down to Mion rather than Akane, as she was the next oldest female. As the Sonozaki family is quite rich, it is obvious that Mion has a large allowance. The 50,000 yen that was announced as the winning prize at a game tournament is said to come from her own pocket. Mion is 17, according to Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Matsuri, with a birthday in early February. Mion is a tomboy and calls herself "oji-san" throughout the games, manga and anime. However, no matter how boyish she acts, she also has a girly side when opening her heart, mainly to her twin sister Sonozaki Shion. It is revealed and very often strongly hinted that she has a crush on Maebara Keiichi, which she expresses by picking on and teasing him at every possible occasion. Due to being the next heir, Mion was branded with the oni (鬼, ogre or demon) tattoo on her back. The tattoo is a right reserved for the oldest child and thus the heir, but Mion was actually born as the younger sister, and therefore born with the name Shion.Mion and Shion intentionally switched places when they were young, because "Shion" (current Mion) felt it was unfair for only one of them to attend family meetings. They swapped the day the oni tattoo was to be branded, resulting in the younger sister "Shion" (Mion) becoming the next heir. No one but the twins themselves seemed to be aware of this, and it is never brought up in the anime nor hinted. Despite Mion's wild personality, she is noticeably the only main character who does not commit murder or becomes dangerously violent (possibly excluding Furude Rika). However, one of the TIPS reveals that she was once driven to kill as a result of jealousy over the attention Keiichi was getting from others, which she responded to by decided to eliminate the "competition" and keep Keiichi for herself.If she needs to defend herself, Mion is also the only one who does not wield a weapon—her weapons are her body and strategical mind. She is trained in martial arts and is well-versed enough to even take down Okonogi easily, who has been training for years more than Shion has. Although Mion is seen using a syringe once in Onikakushi-hen, it is later revealed in Tsumihoroboshi-hen to be a black marker, which Mion was going to use to draw on Keiichi's shirt. It is said that the marker appeared to be a syringe because of Keiichi's paranoia and resulting hallucinations. Physical Appearance Mion has long, pale green hair and green eyes. Her bangs part in the middle and she ties her hair into a ponytail. She has a trim figure and a large bust. There is a large demon tattoo on her back, described in the sound novel and shown in the opening of the anime's first season. During her school days, Mion wears a white short-sleeved shirt with a green (anime) or red (games) tie and wears a yellow, unbuttoned vest. She also wears a long reddish-pink skirt, black socks, and brown shoes. During her free days, she wears a yellow shirt with a slight black turtle neck, a white sweatshirt tied around her waist, blue jeans and brown shoes. She also wears an airsoft gun in a holster on her shoulder, though it is never used in the anime. Once, in the anime's first episode, she is seen wearing a different variation of her free-day clothes; instead of her usual outfit. She wore a white shirt with a dark-red collar, shorts, a green sweatshirt tied around her waist and a purple gun holster. Bathing suit In the first episode of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei, Mion was wearing a Chinese-style red and yellow bathing suit. Oddly enough, the large trademark demon tattoo is missing from her exposed back. This is due to the fact that (according to the TIPS) Mion has waterproof skin makeup for such events. Personality Mion acts energetic and confident, often teasing her friends. She is a very cheerful, easygoing, and sociable girl. She is very friendly and enjoys games. As the leader of the after-school games club, she organizes various card or board games, which she has become extremely good at, partially through cheating. She is the club member that tends to win the most, but as Rena reveals to Keiichi, she was the biggest loser at the beginning of the club. Mion designs most of the "punishment games" that the loser must perform, but, again, at the beginning, she often had to do them herself. It is a tribute to her determination that she has advanced so far in skill. Although Mion seems very self-confident and tomboyish, it is revealed that she is quite girly. This is an important point in Watanagashi-hen and Meakashi-hen, where Keiichi decides to give a doll he won to Rena rather than Mion, thinking that she would not like girly things; in Meakashi-hen, this event is shown to trigger the development of the Hinamizawa syndrome in Shion, leading to the deaths and murders of many people including Mion herself, at the hands of her own sister. However in Minagoroshi-hen, Keiichi is able to resolve this fate by giving the doll to Mion instead (of course Mion is a little hesitant to take it, as she says, "Wh-what?! I don't like that sort of thing! I'm sharp and spunky as you always say!" Keiichi, however, tells her that she's still a girl to him and she ends up revealing her girly side by saying, "Yes, I will treasure this doll," and looking lovingly at the doll.) Mion is seen to be somewhat shy around Keiichi in moments where her crush on him is obivously in plain sight, and because of her shyness, she is unable to open up to him. In Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kira, she is shown to still have the doll, keeping Keiichi's promise on taking good care of it. As the heir to the Sonozaki family estate, she must act very formal and responsible when dealing with family matters. As a result, Mion has another side of her personality that is in complete contrast to her normal self. When she assumes this role, she becomes almost completely expressionless, and very serious. She is seen to be very straightforward and always goes directly to the topic, avoiding any other conversation that might interrupt. A good example of this side of her is from Meakashi-hen, where she forces Shion to rip off three of her own fingernails as punishment, despite the fact that she cares deeply for Shion and later rips off three of her own as retribution. Relationships Sonozaki Shion Shion is Mion's older twin sister, who is shunned by the village and mistaken as the younger twin. They do not bicker about the family heir conspiracy and often switch places at meetings without the family members noticing. In all versions of the series, they are shown to be very close, despite not seeing each other often. In the Meakashi-hen arc, Mion was seen to be scared of Shion when she was locked up. However, this fear could have been because of what Shion was going to do to Keiichi, but mostly because of Shion's psychotic behavior. It is shown that despite their constant bickering in public, Mion opens up to Shion about many personal subjects and both are quite close to each other. In ''Tatarigoroshi-hen'', Shion is implied to actually be a much more difficult opponent than Mion in their club games; when Rena asks Shion to join a club game, Shion replies, "Oh, I wouldn't want to ruin Mion's reputation as club leader. Hey Mion, how about a sister showdown?", resulting in Mion blushing heavily and quickly escaping the conversation. Overall, besides Watanagashi and Meakashi-hen, the two sisters are seen to get along extremely well. In the Minagoroshi-hen and Matsuribayashi-hen, the two sisters are shown to get along immensely well, and have a strong sister bond, but are not above calling each other stupid in certain moments of tension, such as Mion saying "Stupid Shion", and Shion saying "Stupid Sis." However, this could also just be for comic relief of the show. Shion is deeply aware of Mion's feeling towards Keiichi, as seen in prevous arcs, Mion opens up to her on the topic. In Matsuribayshi-hen Shion whispers to Keiichi "Although the person I love is gone, Sis (Mion) still has hers," implying that she wants her sister to be happy. Maebara Keiichi Keiichi and Mion's relationship is arguably the one most expanded on through out the series. Keiichi and Mion's relationship is often hinted to be very strong, and Keiichi and Mion are hinted to have feelings for each other, most notably in Meakashi-hen, where Mion confesses her love for Keiichi to Shion. Mion has also mentioned that Keiichi is a fun person. However, Mion herself has difficulty not only in gathering the courage to voice her feelings across to Keiichi, but also in getting him to acknowledge her as a feminine girl. When Keiichi fails to give Mion a doll he won, saying she wouldn't like it anyway and gives it to Rena, Mion is later seen crying and being upset over this. However, this is all reversed in Minagoroshi-hen, when Keiichi notices Mion's expression and gives her the doll instead. In the later arcs, Mion is still seen to own the doll. In Tsumihoroboshi-hen, when Keiichi hugs Mion as an apology for killing her and Rena in Onikakushi-hen (which she and Rena do not remember), she blushes and stammers profusely. An example of Keiichi's feelings is during Watanagashi-hen, when Keiichi is about to be tortured by who he believes to be Mion. Instead of resisting, he states that if it will soothe the demon inside of Mion she may go ahead, only asking in return for her to save both Mion and Shion. Mion also shows a great and deep amount of concern for Keiichi, such as in the Minagoroshi-hen arc where she breaks into tears after Keiichi has been fatally shot, to which she states that she doesn't want to leave him to die, nor does she want him to die. Mion at certain points will blame herself for her own faults, mostly when her friends are in danger, but Keiichi comforts her in Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kaku-Outbreak, saying she did her best and that she shouldn't blame herself. Keiichi hugs hers and thanks her as well, in which she had given up hope. In Musubienishi-hen, Mion's feelings for Keiichi are highly noticeable and are further seen when Takano says that both make a perfect couple, her grandmother says that he better prepare himself to get comfy with her grandmother, Teppei talks on them "making out" and Keiichi later on joking on him not minding being Mion's boyfriend. Throughout this entire scene, Mion is blushing, stammering, speechless, nervous and later hitting Keiichi in embarrassment. Also, when Keiichi asks why is she blushing and if she took it seriously, she turns completely red and says to him to not say stupid things. At various times, she will instantly turn red when Keiichi gives her a kind look. In the sound novel and manga adaptations of Watanagashi-hen, both Rena and Shion tell Keiichi that Mion is upset over the doll not being given to her. Toward the end of the arc, Keiichi wants to buy the doll and give it to Mion. He later on stands with the doll in his hands, saying to himself "If I ever see you (Mion) again… When I do… If I do… Then… this time… I will give the doll to you… So you'd better take it without making fun of me. I know you'll probably be all stubborn and say you don't want it. But in the end, you'll turn all bright red and take it from me," giving hints to why things turned out differently in Kai. In the Watanagashi-hen visual novel arc, where Keiichi gave the doll to Rena and made Mion upset, he went to buy the same doll a few days later and give it to Mion as an apology. Believing that Shion was Mion's disguise, he gave both the doll and a whole-hearted apology regarding his ignorance of her feelings to Shion, a second before Mion appears from the toy store's counter and witnesses what Keiichi had done (which explains her frequent embarrassment and leaving the classroom every time Keiichi looked at her, as witnessed by Satoko at least fifteen times in one class session during episode 5 of the first season). Near the end of the arc, he buys the same doll a second time and tries to give it to Mion (who was again Shion in disguise) before he is stabbed by Shion. This marks the third time he gave the same doll to the wrong person, without Mion ever knowing his true intentions. In manga ''and ''anime versions of Matsuribayashi-hen, Shion whispers in Keiichi's ear that she has lost the one she loves but Mion still has hers, implying him. The manga ''artist plays with this in "Cover Bonuses." In the first, when talking about her future, Mion muses that she--"ojisan"--wants to "be more feminine and get married." Keiichi interrupts that he cannot hear her muttering to which Mion reacts in comic embarrassed violence. In another, Mion calls Shion stating she wants to deepen her relationship with Keiichi before she graduates, and an eager Shion encourages her to "go for it" and offers to give her tips. In the next panel, Mion arrives at school in a dress with huge bows in her hair which shocks everyone, including Hanyū, to which Mion tearfully responds to Shion in the next panel: "He's totally freaked out now! Stupid Shion!" It is somewhat strongly implied that both have a crush on one another, and the story ends at that stage. Ryūgū Rena Mion and Rena are best friends and have been since prior to the start of the series. Shion considers Rena to be Mion's rival when it comes to Keiichi's feelings, though they never fight about it. Mion and Rena share with each other almost as much as the twins, possibly partly because Shion is away from Mion so frequently. Rena is also seen to have a lot of trust in Mion. Hōjō Satoko Mion and Satoko are good friends through out the series. Like Keiichi, Mion sometimes enjoys teasing Satoko, as seen in ''Onikakushi-hen when she asks the color-blind Satoko to distinguish broccoli from cauliflower. Still, despite her teasing Mion does care for Satoko. Their closeness is especially evident in Meakashi-hen, as Mion begs Shion to spare Satoko's life and offers to die in her place. She agrees to Shion's lucrative terms for saving Satoko (apologizing one thousand times), though she ultimately fails. Furude Rika Mion is close friends with Rika, having known her since she was a child. Rika deeply cares for Mion. Mion and Rika are both in line to be the heads of their households, though Rika inherited her position much sooner than Mion, after her parents were killed. Rika also seems to be interested in Mion's breasts, as seen when she fondled them saying "I won't lose." Trivia *Only a very small number of subbers have noted the fact that Mion says "oji-san" very clearly in many lines where she refers to herself. Oji-san can mean either uncle or old man. MangaGamer's translation of the games includes this detail as "Uncle Mion". *Oji-san is sometimes confused with Onji-san meaning king or same. Which however it may appear to be considered that Mion says "Onji-san" when she's really saying "Oji-san" *During the ending special of the 2nd episode of Kai, when Hanyū recites the "ABC's of Higurashi" and asks Rika to provide an input for the letter S, Rika replies, "Shii and Mii go 'Gugegegege'!" This gutteral sound is heard during the Zombie Tag game when Shion and Mion were acting as bloodthirsty zombies, and also in the 5th episode of Rei, when Mion receives a violent uppercut from a lovecursed Rena. *Befitting her role as a yakuza heiress, Mion's school uniform is of a style stereotypically associated with the "sukeban" delinquent subculture. *Her and Shion's father is a yakuza boss. Images Mi1.png|Mion's manga illustration by Karin Suzuragi Mi3.png|Mion's manga illustration by Yoshiki Tonogai michan.png|Mion's manga illustration by Mimori 230px-Higurashi_-_Mion_Manga.jpg|Mion's manga illustration by Yutori Houjyou mion7.png|Mion's manga illustration by Jiro Suzuki 225px-Mi5.png|Mion's manga illustration by Hinase Momoyama mion manga.jpg|Mion's manga illustration by Kousaka Rito Miichan0707.png|Mion's manga illustration by Soichirou Mi10.png|Mion's manga illustration by Yamada J-ta Kizuna lolimion preview.png|Young Mion from Himatsubushi in Kizuna Miondayb.png|Mion in Higurashi Daybreak miondaybreak.jpg|Mion in Higurashi Daybreak Portable MEGA EDITION mionjan.png|Mion as she appears in Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Jan mion_school.jpg|Mion's school uniform in the anime adaptation mion bus stop.png|Mion in Hinamizawa Teiryūjo (Hinamizawa Bus Stop) File:M_mion.jpg|Mion portrayed by Rin Asuka in the live action movies de:Mion Sonozaki Category:Characters Category:Females Category:Main Characters Category:Sonozakis Category:The Club